ANTIPOLO — Ginebra completed half of the PBA Season 50 Commissioner’s Cup semifinal picture after breezing past Phoenix, 112-81, in a game that hardly gave out any playoff vibe at the Ynares Center here on Friday night.
The Kings blew the game wide open with a 34-15 explosion in the second chapter to build a commanding 64-44 lead at the break, never to face any resistance en route to becoming the second team to qualify for the Final Four.
And by making good use of their win-once incentive, the crowd darlings have forged a showdown with Rain or Shine, which was actually the very first to advance following a 113-104 ouster of San Miguel earlier in the night.
(C) PBA Images
“I just know how hard it is to go up against Yeng Guiao and his teams. They play the game extremely hard; they play the game extremely fast. They compete all the time,” said head coach Tim Cone as they brace for a best-of-seven showdown.
Justin Brownlee led the way with 24 points, five rebounds, and five assists, but couldn’t finish the game, reportedly due to a hamstring injury, which he suffered during the 8:15 mark of the third quarter, never to come back.
The three-time Best Import, though, had already inflicted enough damage, having scored 22 of his points in the first half to help in the pullaway.
Scottie Thompson came just short of a triple-double as the former MVP finished with 16 points, nine rebounds, and the same number of assists.
RJ Abarrientos made 16 points as well with five rebounds. Stephen Holt chipped in 11 markers while Japeth Aguilar, Troy Rosario, Nards Pinto, and Jeremiah Gray made welcome contributions with at least six points each.
“I just thought we executed on a really, really high level. Even when Justin left the floor, we continued to execute at a high level, generated a lot of good, open looks, and the ball moved,” the league’s winningest mentor said.
The semifinals are expected to commence on Wednesday, May 10, in the same venue, with the other bracket to be filled in tomorrow night when the remaining quarterfinalists take to the court in their knockout games.
(C) PBA Images
The returning Ricci Rivero, meanwhile, had 15 points and eight rebounds to lead Phoenix, which saw the end of its campaign in blowout fashion.
Johnathan Williams was his lone support with 13 points and 11 rebounds as they fell flat in the worst possible time, leading to the unwanted exit.
The Fuel Masters, though, were still in the thick of the fight early and even raced to a 21-14 lead, but the opposition got going gradually with the troika of Thompson, Brownlee, and Rosario leading the crawl-back into the match.
Evan Nelle gave themselves a 29-28 lead before the end of the first, but Brownlee went perfect from the line, and it would be all Kings as their usual suspects led the sudden surge to open the second frame, never to be denied.
The Scores:
Ginebra 112 – Brownlee 24, Thompson 16, Abarrientos 16, Holt 11, J.Aguilar 8, Rosario 8, Pinto 7, Gray 6, Estil 5, Cu 3, Torres 2, Go 2, R.Aguilar 2, Carino 2, Abis 0.
Phoenix 81 – Rivero 15, Williams 13, Nelle 9, Tuffin 9, Perkins 7, Tio 7, Ando 7, Ynot 6, Cullar 3, Santos 3, Daves 2, Gozum 0, Delos Santos 0.
Quarterscores: 30-29, 64-44, 90-54, 112-81.
